How to Effectively Write Your Own Job Description (2024)

With so many educational resources at your disposal, you may find that you’ve professionally outgrown your current job duties. Perhaps you’ve learned an arsenal of new skills that can benefit your employer and your career path.

As a result, writing your own job description could assist your company in making better use of your time and talents.

That said, writing effective job descriptions isn’t always easy. Continue reading below to learn how to describe the new kind of role you want to take up with your organization.

How To Write Your Own Job Description

1) Think About What You Want To Do

The first step is to think about the tasks and projects you’d prefer to work on. You can start by listing all your special talents and the kind of things you enjoy working on.

After brainstorming a few ideas, cross-reference them with your current role to see where you can fill in the gaps. It’s crucial to keep your manager in mind to see how you can make their lives easier.

Remember, the idea is to create a new role that benefits you and your employer. If you can describe your new job in a way that helps everyone, your chances of getting it will be much higher.

2) Decide the Value of the New Role

A company will likely only create a new role for you if they see its value. That said, rapidly growing companies and startups are constantly creating new roles to accelerate growth.
Think about what needs your current job doesn’t meet or any problems that can be solved with your new role. However, the problem should be big enough to justify a new position. Once you see the void to fill, explain to your employer how your skills and ambition make you the right person for the job.

3) Give Your New Role a Name

The name of your new job should clearly explain its purpose.

For example, let’s say your company has a problem with client retention. In that case, your new role could be called Client Retention Specialist or Customer Relations Expert. If you’re stuck on the name, try researching similar positions in other companies for inspiration.

4) Map Out Your Credentials and Attributes

Now is your time to shine and explain how you’re the perfect person for this role. List out your experiences, skills, and reasons that make you the perfect candidate for the role. If you’ve been working at your company for several years, that could be a selling point!

You can also list out all the projects you’ve successfully completed and showcase how these tasks give you an advantage. Performance reviews highlighting your achievements can also help convince your employer to give you the new role.

5) Write a Concise Job Description

Your job description should be short and sweet. It’s crucial to highlight the position’s value and its benefits to your organization. If possible, try to trim it down to only a few sentences.

There should be a list of all the essential duties and daily responsibilities involved with the position in your description. You want to provide enough tasks to make the job seem necessary. However, try not to list too many functions as it may make the role seem overwhelming or exhausting.

6) Submit the Job to Your Manager

After writing your job description, submit it to your employer and showcase how it will bring value to your organization. Be sure to demonstrate how the new role will solve any company problems and why you’re the right person for the job.

They might not be crazy about the idea of a new position at first, but they should accept it if they can see that it provides value and aligns with the company’s mission statement.

7) Think About Who Will Take Over Your Current Duties

If your employer creates a new role, someone will need to replace your current position. Make sure to consider this when presenting the idea to your manager.

While you may still have time to do some of your previous tasks, you’ll need to assign the other duties to a team member.

8) Research the Current Job Market

Research is your best friend if you want to write a job description that sells. You can start by looking at similar roles at other companies to see the expected duties and requirements for the position. You’ll also feel what language to use when writing your description to make it clearer.

Moreover, you can check what kind of salary range to expect with the new role so that you can have a well-informed discussion with your management team. You should research to see the right person to pitch your idea to. It will most likely be your supervisor or human resources manager.

9) Be Patient

Creating a new job within a company doesn’t happen overnight. Higher-ups have a lot of paperwork and consideration to solidify a new position.

As a result, you’ll need to be patient and remember to follow up with your manager about your request. The general rule of thumb is to wait at least a week to hear back from management before pressing them further.

Your employer also may have questions about the new job, so be ready to answer them effectively. If they accept your pitch, remember to send a formal thank you to your management team. If they go forward with your idea, be sure to still thank them for their thoughts and time.

What’s the Benefit of Writing Your Own Job Description?

According to Indeed, ambition and loyalty are two traits companies love to see in their employers. Showing that you’ve taken the time to think about problems within your company and your ambition to fix them will prove to your employer that you’re actively trying to better the organization.Plus, it’s an opportunity to create an ideal job for your long-term career.

Instead of screening job listings and trying to find the perfect position, you can take action to create the kind of role you would enjoy doing. Some other benefits of writing your own job description include:

• Working on things you love
• Having more motivation and inspiration
• Getting more experience to further your career goals
• Bringing more value to your organization

If your employer accepts your pitch, you will create a more comfortable and motivating work environment that benefits you and your company.

Writing a Job Description During an Interview

Some recruiters and hiring managers ask that candidates write their own job descriptions during the interview process. They will usually do this if you request a higher salary to see if your expected pay is justified. It may also be to see if you fully understand the role you’re applying for.

In that case, use the tips above to reword the job description in a way that highlights your attributes. You can pick your strongest skills and elaborate on your personal experiences to show them you’re the right candidate.

However, try not to slip away from the current description. The duties and requirements should still align with the original description.

Conclusion

Writing a job description can be challenging, but putting in the time to make it effective will be worth the effort. Whether you’re writing your own job description to create a new role at your current company or your interviewer requests it, writing a solid description will increase your chances of getting your ideal job.

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